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SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2017
SPACE CHRONICLES
surements of Mercury’s interior, sur-
face, exosphere and magnetosphere.
The information will tell us more
about the origin and evolution of a
planet close to its parent star, pro-
viding a better understanding of
the overall evolution of our own
Solar System.
To prepare for the harsh conditions
close to the Sun, the spacecraft
have undergone extensive testing
both as separate units, and in the 6
m-high launch and cruise configu-
ration. One set of tests carried out
earlier this year at ESA’s technical
centre in the Netherlands focused
Preparing for Mercury:
BepiColombo stack
completes testing
by ESA
E
SA’s Mercury spacecraft has
passed its final test in launch
configuration, the last time it
will be stacked like this before
being reassembled at the launch
site next year.
Bep i Co l ombo ’s
two orbiters, Ja-
pan’s
Mercury
Magnetospheric
Orbiter and ESA’s
Mercury Plane-
tary Orbiter, will
be carried togeth-
er by the Mercury
Transport Module.
The carrier will use
a combination of
electric propul-
sion and multiple
gravity-assists at
Earth, Venus and
Mercury to com-
plete the 7.2 year
journey to the So-
lar System’s mys-
terious innermost
planet. Once at
Mercury, the or-
biters will sepa-
rate and move
into their own or-
bits to make com-
plementary mea-
B
epiColombo seen at ESA’s test centre on 6 July 2017. ESA’s Mercury spacecraft has passed its
final test in launch configuration. To prepare for the harsh conditions close to the Sun, the space-
craft have undergone extensive testing both as separate units, and in the 6 m-high launch and cruise
configuration. [ESA–Philippe Sebirot]